Friends, colleagues and state leaders on Thursday mourned the slaying of Mendocino County Sheriff's Deputy Ricky Del Fiorentino, a former high school wrestling and football star in Napa, an avid outdoorsman and a veteran cop.

Del Fiorentino loved his job and took pride in his career, but authorities said it came to a tragic end Wednesday when he encountered a violent gunman along Highway 1 in the Cleone area north of Fort Bragg.

When he pulled up in a patrol car and came face-to-face with the suspect from Oregon, who was wanted for kidnapping and linked to a homicide, the assailant opened fire with an assault rifle, killing Del Fiorentino.

The series of incidents began about 12:30 a.m. Wednesday in Eugene, Ore., when 79-year-old George Bundy Wasson was shot and killed and his home was set on fire. Chaney, who was acquainted with Wasson's family, was identified as a person of interest in the slaying.

Less than an hour later, Chaney carjacked two men of their BMW and forced them into the trunk, authorities said. The victims subsequently escaped.

After crossing into California, Chaney got into a confrontation with the owner of a store at Confusion Hill, a tourist stop in Mendocino County, when he urinated outside the business, authorities said. Chaney fired a shotgun at the owner, who fired back with a handgun, investigators said.

A sheriff's lieutenant spotted the BMW on Highway 1, but lost it. Then, shortly before noon, Del Fiorentino came across the BMW on a dirt road and was killed by Chaney, authorities said. The suspect allegedly opened fire on the Fort Bragg police lieutenant, who returned fire and killed him.

Those who knew Del Fiorentino, who was 48, said Thursday that he relished serving his community. He was a married father of five - the youngest a 6-year-old daughter - and previously worked for the Fort Bragg Police Department.

"He was just a great man all the way around," said his sister, Debra Amaral, a CHP dispatcher. "The best way I remember Rick is that if you needed something or you wanted something, he was the first one there. He would always be there."

"He was naturally born with some really great strength," Franco said. "He had a great laugh and a great smile. He was always friendly with people. He wasn't your typical high school jock walking around campus. He was good to everybody."

Del Fiorentino took second in the heavyweight division of the state wrestling championship in 1982 and graduated a year later. He earned a scholarship to wrestle at the University of Oklahoma, and was inducted into the Napa High Athletic Hall of Fame in 1998.

A classmate, Thomas Sly, who was also on the football and wrestling teams, joined Del Fiorentino at the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office. "They loved the outdoors, hunting and fishing," Franco said. "They were joined at the hip."

Franco deplored the violence that took Del Fiorentino's life.

"He probably had no chance at all," Franco said. Referring to the assault rifle, he said, "It makes you think about why is it necessary to have one of these things, particularly in a lunatic's hands, somebody that's desperate like this individual obviously was."

In a statement, Gov. Jerry Brown said, "Anne and I were saddened to learn of the tragic death of Deputy Del Fiorentino. Deputy Del Fiorentino was killed upholding the oath he swore: to protect his community."

Attorney General Kamala Harris said the deputy's slaying was a "stark reminder of the danger our brave men and women in law enforcement face every day to keep our communities safe. Deputy Del Fiorentino will never be forgotten by the people of California."

A public memorial service will be held at 10 a.m. Wednesday at the Fort Bragg High School auditorium.